Foreword
Back in January of this year, the European Parliament
voted to approve amendments to the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive, thus
forming what has become colloquially known as RED II. While many in the biofuels
sector have celebrated the reforms and their commitment to increased levels of
biofuels, the reforms have also received criticism for the cap they have placed
on crop-based biofuels. The intention behind this policy is to reduce the wider
sustainability implications of biofuels: biofuel feedstocks include palm oil, the
harvest of which is a highly controversial issue that the EU is seeking to
distance itself from. Unsustainable palm oil harvest can actually result in
greater net CO2 emissions than fossil fuels. However, some NGOs
based in Eastern Europe have spoken out against this cap, claiming that all
crop-based biofuels should not be painted with the same brush as palm oil. They
have called for a more nuanced approach, that recognises the individual
sustainability impacts of each......
Other news this month includes:
Policy
- Ireland commits to crop-based biofuels
- Ethanol groups sue US EPA over biofuel waivers
- Non-profit organisations argue against EU crop biofuel limit
Markets
- New funding for Dutch shipping biofuels company
Research & Development
- Global Bioenergies begin project to establish isobutene value chain
- Swedish plant to produce biofuels from lignin
- Finnish progress into algal biofuels
- Global Bioenergies joins projects to diversify isobutene feedstocks
- Sweetwater to build biorefinery plant
Bioethanol
- Mushroom bacterium could produce butanol biofuel
Biodiesel
- Cross-Solent ferry to run on biodiesel
- Velocys licenses Red Rock biofuels plant
Aviation Biofuel
- Study begins into feasibility of jet fuel from forest biomasss
Other Fuel
- Tripling in CNG's biomethane fuel demand
- Novel process for algal hydrogen production
- Södra and ANDRITZ to produce biomethanol
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Events